The State Government will seek over Rs 11 crore from the Ministry of Human Resources Development setting up seven community colleges in next three financial years.
The community colleges, modelled on the ones in the United States, assume significance as the State aims at providing skill development training to one million youths in next five years to drive its economic growth. The project is being taken up under the Union Government’s community college scheme. Under the scheme, the Centre plans to open around 100 such colleges in the country on a pilot basis.
It has been planned that these colleges will come up at Khalikote Autonomous College in Berhampur, Fakir Mohan College in Balasore, DD College in Keonjhar, Vikram Deb College in Jeypore, Maharaja Purna Chandra College at Baripada, Government College, Rourkela and Government College in Bhawanipatna. While the existing colleges would provide space to house the community colleges, private agencies will be hired to set up laboratories, equipment and arrange manpower. Each community college would require an initial capital of around ` 1.5 crore to be funded by the Centre.
Officials in the Department of Higher Education said in the next meeting of the Department higher-ups with the Ministry of Human Resources Development scheduled this month, the Department will seek funds to the tune of ` 1,133.86 lakhs for the purpose. Of the amount, ` 441 lakh has been earmarked to be spent on the colleges in this financial year, ` 381 lakh in 2014-15 and `311.86 lakh in 2015-16.
“Community college is an innovative educational alternative providing holistic education and eligibility for employment to the disadvantaged. These colleges are one of the reasons, often unheralded, that the US has been so successful,” said Higher Education Secretary Gagan Dhal. He added that after completion of associate degree, a student can take admission in an undergraduate college.
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